Netball league returns with NIC scripting same old story
Ruth Meeme of NIC (M) and Prisons’ Florence Nanyonga fight for the ball during their Netball National League clash at Namboole on June 4. PHOTO BY ISMAIL KEZAALA
What you need to know:
- When the league started, some teams claimed that they were not ready and ended up having their games pushed to later dates.
With the national netball team, the She Cranes, heading to Namibia for the Pent Series and Africa Netball Championships last week, the league was halted to allow players to represent the country in the competitions.
The league returned on Wednesday this week with more fixtures at Kibuli and today more games will be played at Uganda Prisons Grounds, Luzira.
Score brings you key talking points from the league before the break off.
NIC soar, fans in
NIC have won two consecutive league trophies in 2018 and 2019 and are yet to lose in the current campaign. NIC started the league on a high, beating Prisons, KCCA, Posta and Police.
This has been the case in the previous seasons in which the 20-time league champions have emerged unbeaten.
The new trend of attracting fans to games was started by Makindye Weyonje. Normally fans, especially employees from the city sanitation team, used to throng the Kibuli court.
This is still going on but has also alerted fans of other clubs to also start watching their teams play. Despite free entrance, the netball league before could not interest any enthusiasts.
During match days, teams had to support themselves. However, this season has seen fans at Luzira and Nakivubo Blue where KCCA and Uganda Prisons.
Shockers
It has not been all rosy for league mainstays against newcomers as some have handed rude reminders in defeat.
The first was when newly promoted Uganda X Luwero beat UPDF 46-40 and then Makindye Weyonje stunned KCCA 40-39 for the first time.
Before the break, KCCA, runners-up in the 2019 season, were languishing second from bottom-place Posta.
Inconsistency
Inconsistency and teams missing fixtures has continued to plague the netball league. When the league started, some teams claimed that they were not ready and ended up having their games pushed to later dates.
Among them was UCU which missed the first three outings, citing unreadiness of players. Despite the league continuation, when players were called for national team training camp, some teams still missed games citing involvement of their stars in national duties.
Previously, league matches were played on Wednesdays and Saturdays but this was only done in the opening week as later teams could not make it for the Wednesday fixtures.
National Netball League
Today
UPDF vs. UCU
Police vs. KCCA
KBK vs. Weyonje
KCCA vs. UCU
